“No. I don’t think you should call her,” Noel said as she paced back and forth in Lincoln’s living room.
A fire was roaring in the fireplace, taking the chill off the November night air, but it didn’t do anything to warm Faith. Her insides were ice cold and had been since the moment Noel had stalked into the house.
“She’s trying to manipulate Faith, the youngest one. The one who remembers the least of what happened. No. It doesn’t matter what she has to say,” Noel raged.
“Noel,” Abby said softly. “I know you’re angry but—”
“You’re damned right, I’m angry, and you should be too, Abby. She left on your birthday. She didn’t even remember!”
Tears filled Abby’s eyes and she looked away.
Yvette, who’d been silent up until that point, stood. “I think Faith needs to decide for herself.”
“Vette!” Noel glared at her. “This is a family decision. And I say we don’t do anything unless we all agree.”
Yvette shook her head. “You know that’s not going to work. How would you feel if Mom had written you a letter and we told you it wasn’t okay to answer her?”
“I’d soak the damn letter in vodka and then torch it,” Noel said, her voice flat and void of heat.
Faith was sure she would have, too. She wondered if her mother knew that about her second oldest daughter? It was hard to imagine she did, but Noel had always been the one with a short fuse. She also held a grudge, and the biggest one Noel was holding onto sat squarely on Gabrielle Townsend’s shoulders. Not that Faith could blame her. She was angry, too. More angry than she’d even realized. But now that Noel was letting it all out, Faith recognized the simmering resentment that had been building in her own gut.
“I’d call her,” Yvette said, holding her hand up to stave off Noel’s objections. “I want to know what she has to say for herself. I want to know what was so terrible about her life here that she just up and left us. All of us.”
Abby reached out and grabbed Yvette’s hand, lending her silent moral support.
“Does it matter why?” Noel asked as she flopped down into one of Lin’s oversize chairs.
“Some of us need answers even if they aren’t ones we want to hear,” Abby said. “You know, closure.”
“Closure is overrated,” Noel said and rested the back of her hand over her eyes.
“No, it isn’t,” Yvette said quietly and glanced over at their father who was standing near the hearth saying nothing. “What do you think, Dad?”
He shrugged and shook his head. “She didn’t write to me.”
“He doesn’t want to hear from her,” Noel barked. “Trust me. She left him with four little girls. What more does he need to know?”
Faith watched Noel through narrowed eyes and, not for the first time, thought her sister might be the most damaged of all of them. First their mother had walked out on them and hadn’t come back, and then her first husband had done the same. Xavier, her ex-husband, had walked back into their lives a year ago. It turned out that he hadn’t actually wanted to leave her and Daisy, but that didn’t change the fact that she suffered from some serious abandonment issues.
“What if we find out she didn’t want to leave?” Faith asked. “Would you want to know that?”
Noel scowled at her. “Like Xavier you mean?”
Faith nodded.
“I’ll remind you that Xavier left of his own free will because he couldn’t be honest with us. It was only later when he was drugged that his memory was altered. I don’t for a second believe that Mom didn’t have a choice, and honestly, since having Daisy, it’s not anything I can understand or forgive her for. I vote no; don’t contact her. And that’s all I have to say about this.”
“Abby?” Yvette asked. “Where do you fall?”
Tears stood in Abby’s eyes as she turned to Faith. “I’d call her. Whatever her reasons, good or bad, I want to know. I want to put this to rest.”
“One vote to call, one vote to ignore,” Faith said. “Yvette? What do you think?”
Yvette hung her head. When she looked up, she met Noel’s gaze. “I completely understand where you’re coming from, Noel. The idea of walking out on Skye makes my stomach hurt, and I don’t understand any woman who can just leave her children. But I have to admit, I want to hear what she has to say for herself. Not for her, but for me, so I can try to make some sort of sense of what she did. I still vote to call her.”
“Two votes to call, one to ignore,” Faith said under her breath.
Abby sat down next to Faith. “It looks like the decision is entirely yours, little sis. Whatever you want to do, we’re behind you. Right, Vette? Noel?”
“Of course we are,” Yvette said, taking a seat on the other side of Faith.
The three of them turned their attention to Noel, all of them staring her down.
She peeked at them from behind her hand and groaned. “You don’t need my approval.”
“Yes, we do,” the other three said in unison.
Yvette smiled at her. “You’re one of us. We care about what you think, too.”
“Ugh!” Noel stood. “Fine. Call her. But tell her not to get in touch with me. She won’t like what I have to say.” She shook her head and walked over to Lin. “Goodnight, Dad. I’m sorry you have to deal with this. I know how much it hurts.”
Lin wrapped her in his arms and pressed a kiss to her temple. “I let that relationship go a long time ago, love. My only concern now is you girls. I don’t want to see you hurt again.”
She nodded and hugged him tighter. “Don’t worry about me.” Noel jerked her head toward her sisters. “It’s those three saps you need to worry about.”
He chuckled. “Don’t I know it.”
Faith paced her office, her nerves making her stomach do acrobatics. She hadn’t eaten anything except a Danish from Incantation Café, and the sugar had only fueled her anxiety. How was she going to just pick up the phone and call her mother? She didn’t even know if she’d be able to get words out. And what would she say anyway? Hi, Mom. Thanks for finally acknowledging you have daughters?
Why was she stressing so hard? She really didn’t have to say anything, did she? Her mother was the one who’d initiated contact. Faith could call her and just see what she had to say, right? That’s what she knew she should do, but she couldn’t. Not by herself anyway. She picked up the phone, but instead of calling her mother, she called Abby.
“Faith?” her sister said after the first ring. “Are you okay? Did you talk to her?”
“No. Are you busy?” Faith asked, trying to ignore the nausea terrorizing her gut.
“Not too busy for you. What do you need?”
“Can you come over and just… I don’t know. Hold my hand through this? I thought I could do this on my own, but I’m so nervous I’m ready to vomit.”
“Way to sell it, little sis,” Abby gently teased. “Just what I wanted to do today—hold your hair back while you talk to the mother who ditched us.”
Faith knew she’d meant for the words to be lighthearted, but they’d ended up coming out flat with a tinge of resentment.
“I’m sorry, Faith,” Abby said quickly. “That didn’t come out the way I intended. I’ll be right over. Need me to bring anything? Chocolate? Wine? A voodoo doll?”
Tears stung Faith’s eyes even as she laughed. “Just you. We can walk over to the brewery after.”
“I’m on my way.”
They ended the call, and Faith slumped down in her chair. She put her head down on her desk and tried to think of nothing other than the holiday Chocolate Stout she knew was on tap at the Townsend brewery. She didn’t have any scheduled appointments that afternoon. If she wanted to drown herself in beer, she was free to do so.
There was a knock on the door, followed by Lena’s nervous voice. “Faith? There’s someone asking for you.”
Of course there was. Being a business owner meant there was no time for self-indulgent pity parties. “Coming.” She opened the door to find her receptionist standing there wringing her hands. “What is it, Lena?”
“Are you… um, making staffing changes?” Lena asked.
“Huh?” Faith stared at her in confusion. “No. What made you ask that?”
“So you aren’t hiring?”
Faith frowned. “Not officially. We will need another therapist if business keeps growing, but other than that, I hadn’t planned on it. Not yet.”
Lena let out a long, relieved breath and smiled at Faith. “Good. I dunno what’s going on, but the woman waiting for you in the reception room is going on and on about how she’s going to transform this place and by the time she’s done, you’ll be kissing her feet in gratitude. I thought maybe you were hiring a new front-end manager or something.”
That was the job Faith had promised Lena once they were big enough to warrant a full staff. “Definitely not.” She gave Lena a reassuring smile. “I’m not letting you get out of our agreement that easily. I meant it when I said that was your job as soon as this place is up to speed.”
“Thanks,” Lena said, relief flashing in her dark eyes. “She just seemed so sure of herself, I guess it made me paranoid.”
Faith slipped her arm through Lena’s and said, “Come on. Let’s go see what this is all about.”
“Her name is Vivian,” Lena said. “She came by the other day, remember? But you were uh… too busy with Hunter to meet with her.
“Vivian?” The Vivian? Hunter’s Vivian?
“Yeah, she recently moved here from Las Vegas, I think she said.”
Oh gods. It was Hunter’s Vivian. What was she doing at the spa? Faith was dying of curiosity as she strode through the door to the reception area.
Vivian was dressed in chic black pants, stylish leather boots, and a flowy silk blouse that hung off one shoulder. Her sleek dark hair had been straightened, making her look like a runway model.
Jeez, she’s gorgeous, Faith thought, and she felt a rush of jealousy as she walked over to the woman, her hand out in greeting. “Vivian, hi. What a surprise to see you again.”
Vivian took Faith’s hand in both of hers and said, “Your spa is gorgeous. Congratulations. I understand you just opened this summer.”
Faith dropped Vivian’s hand and nodded. “We did. It’s been a challenge but rewarding nonetheless.”
“No doubt.” She glanced around and focused on the hand-carved pentacle that hung over the gas fireplace. “I can see touches of Hunter all over the place. He drew that piece for the artist to replicate, didn’t he?”
Faith’s mouth dropped open in surprise. It was a representation of the one that hung in the Townsend household, and Hunter had sketched it out for the artist who’d brought it to life. “Yes, he did. How did you know that?”
Her eyes glinted as she leaned in and whispered, “It’s the tree right in the middle. He’s drawn it before. I think it’s a replica of a tree that was in Hunter’s backyard as a kid. He and Craig built a treehouse and then spent much of their adolescent years using it as a hideout from the parental figures.”
Faith stared at it and felt a rush of humble gratitude. It was the same tree that Hunter had used when he’d helped her with her store logo. It made her feel closer to him, special in some way. “Wow, I had no idea.”
“It’s such a Hunter thing to do,” Vivian said with a quiet smile. Then she straightened her shoulders and transformed into a brighter, more animated version of herself as she picked up a bottle of Abby’s handmade lotion and nodded her approval. “Great products on the shelf. Did your sister tell you I’m a sales rep for her now?”
“You are?” Faith asked, surprised. “When did that happen?”
“It’s only been twenty-four hours, and I’ve already secured her a new account in Eureka.”
“Wow, impressive,” Faith said, wondering where this was going.
She didn’t have to wait long to find out. Vivian walked over to the front desk, leaned one elbow on the counter, and said, “If you give me a chance, I can do the same for you.”
Faith frowned. “But we don’t sell products. Not our own products anyway. We sell services.”
“Exactly.” Vivian glanced around. “This place is gorgeous and high-end, but it looks like you could use some more foot traffic.”
Being that it was the middle of the week during that time between Thanksgiving and Christmas, tourism was down in Keating Hollow, which meant the spa was quiet. They’d had a few clients come through in the morning, but that afternoon the place was a ghost town. And Faith had to admit to herself that if December didn’t pick up she was going to have a hard time paying some bills come January.
“We are definitely trying to find ways to build our local clientele,” Faith said.
“Great.” Vivian beamed at her. “That’s where I come in. If you’re willing, I’d like to see what I can do about bringing you clients from Eureka and the other surrounding towns, regulars as well as tourists. Ones that don’t necessarily get to Keating Hollow all the time and either don’t know you’re here or just haven’t tried you out yet. I’d work on commission of course, but it would be a win-win for you since you only pay if I deliver.”
Faith had been fully prepared to turn Vivian down for whatever job she’d been proposing. There just wasn’t room in the budget. But with a commission-based position, she found herself unable to say no. There was no denying that they needed traffic in the spa to keep it open. Faith would be a fool to turn her down.
“How would we know the clients booking with us were a direct result of your marketing efforts?” Faith asked.
“Is that a yes?” Vivian asked, her grin widening.
“I think so. We’ll need to work out some details, like your commission terms and how to make sure you get credit, but at first glance, it sounds like it’s worth a shot.”
“Excellent!” Vivian clapped her hands together. “Should we go into your office and work out the details?”
“Absolutely.” Faith opened the door to the back rooms for Vivian and turned to Lena. “Abby’s on her way. Just send her back when she gets here.”
“No problem, boss,” Lena said, sliding back behind the reception desk. “Hey, sales reps don’t turn into front-end managers, do they?”
Faith barked out a laugh. “Not at A Touch of Magic, they don’t. Don’t worry. With any luck, now that we have Vivian on board, you’ll be moving up sooner than you think.”